Hell's Gate Geothermal Reserve & Mud Spa

About This Activity

Hell's Gate (Tikitere) is the most geothermally active area in Rotorua, containing the southern hemisphere's only thermal waterfall and the world's largest boiling mud pool. The 8-hectare geothermal walk (NZ$45 adult) passes sulphurous craters and steaming pools through the landscape George Bernard Shaw named in 1934. The adjacent Wai Ora Spa offers volcanic mud baths — smear on warm mineral mud, let it dry, then rinse in sulphur hot pools — an experience Māori have used for healing for centuries. The combined Geothermal Walk + Mud Bath package costs NZ$90 per adult; the full Hell's Gate Experience including spa costs NZ$115.

Seasonal note: Open year-round; the mud bath is especially appealing in cooler months when the warm pools feel more therapeutic